The Capitol building might be the least festive place in America this New Year’s Eve.

Not even the usual assortment of protesters wanted to be there, even as Congress prepared to finally take action on the fiscal cliff. The lawns of the Capitol were quiet, with only the occasional stray unhappy sign-holder lingering.

And for those who were stuck inside, the unhappiness was palpable.

Staffers grumbled, security guards groused, reporters watched the clock in hopes of making dinner reservations and many members of Congress wished they were elsewhere.

Sen. Rand Paul was missing his wife Kelley and three sons back in Kentucky. The Republican said he probably would’ve been bowling or playing soccer with them had he been home.

“They’re all in Kentucky, and I wish I were there too,” Paul said. “We do fireworks, and we also do the old-fashioned taking the pots out and beating them at midnight.”

Indeed, missing family was one thing members of both parties could agree on.

“It’s very sad not to be with my family, but we’ve got to what we’ve got to do here,” said Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who typically spends the week between Christmas and New Year’s with her children and grandchildren.

Rep. Steve Scalise was missing out on another New Year’s pastime: watching football.

“My plans were to be with my family back home and watch the LSU game tonight, where they are going to play Clemson in the Chick-fil-A Bowl,” the Louisiana Republican said.

Instead, Scalise said he‘d have to resort to Facetime for face time with his children.

“This is the job we have to do, but I would much rather be with my family back home,” he said. “My five- and three-year-old aren’t real happy that daddy is not home. And Daddy is not real happy to not be with them.”

Some members of Congress went to extraordinary lengths to avoid that problem.

Rep. Jon Runyan (R-N.J.) brought his daughter Bella along with him for a wondrous New Year’s Eve of congressional meetings and votes. It didn’t quite match the annual family bowling outing for kicks, but such is life for a Congress that’s never met a deadline it wouldn’t run up against.

“The other [daughter] is coming down later in the week, too,” Runyan said.

The House didn’t stick around to see who would get kissed on the floor at midnight. Lawmakers packed up and headed out before 6:30 p.m.

As House Republicans dashed out of a conference meeting in the evening, the members shouted “Happy New Year’s!” to the assembled press. Some joked about missing football games and reported that they’d been told not to drink too much in case they were called back to vote.

Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) also brought his son to hang out on the House floor, but they were able to head out in time to still fit in fireworks.

“He wanted to come here today and be with me and see if we would go over the cliff,” Harris said as the pair walked off the floor. “And I guess he saw us go over the cliff.”

They came prepared.

“We had a bottle of sparkling grape juice just in case we were here at midnight,” Harris said.

While House members made an early escape, the Senate stuck around, waiting for a deal to be worked out to avert the fiscal cliff.

Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) had to cut short a trip to St. Thomas with his family as part of a celebration for his 27th wedding anniversary.

But, Carper said, there still may be hope: His anniversary technically isn’t until Jan. 1 since they were married soon after midnight.

Some spouses showed how sincere they were about that “thick and thin” wedding vow.

Deborah Dingell, wife of Rep. John Dingell (D-Michigan), waited outside the House chambers to head out to dinner. She had dropped him off in the morning and the pair were planning to spend the evening together.

She wasn’t upset about being in the Capitol Monday night — and said she advised other spouses not let the holiday schedule get to them.

“Don’t add to the stress by getting uptight about it,” she said. “If you have been around like I have, you knew this could happen.”

Erica Elliott, spokeswoman for Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), shared the same laid-back philosophy about working on New Year’s Eve. She didn’t even bother to make plans.

“I always thought I would be here,” Elliott said. “For me, it might as well be August 31st.”

Manu Raju contributed to this report.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified the lawmaker Elliott works for.